Softwr

Cloud & Infrastructure · head to head

Lambda (AWS Serverless) vs ClickHouse

Lambda (AWS Serverless) logo

Lambda (AWS Serverless)

Cloud & Infrastructure

Run code without thinking about servers

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
ClickHouse logo

ClickHouse

Database & Data Management

Fast open-source column-oriented database for real-time analytics

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Lambda (AWS Serverless) billed on two axes at once, $0.20 per million requests plus $0.0000166667 per GB-second of duration, so memory settings change the bill as much as traffic does; ClickHouse limited multi-row atomic transactions and expensive UPDATE/DELETE operations unsuitable for transactional systems
  • They diverge on capability: Lambda (AWS Serverless) covers Function-as-a-Service, ClickHouse covers Column-oriented Storage.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Lambda (AWS Serverless) and ClickHouse actually diverge.

Attributes where Lambda (AWS Serverless) and ClickHouse differ
AttributeLambda (AWS Serverless)ClickHouse
Pricing modelusage-basedUnknown
PlatformsWeb, ApiLinux, macOS, Windows (via Docker)
CategoryCloud & InfrastructureDatabase & Data Management
Founded20142021

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Lambda (AWS Serverless)

  • Function-as-a-Service
  • Event-driven execution
  • Auto-scaling
  • Pay-per-use
  • Multiple languages
  • Concurrency limits
  • Dead Letter Queues
  • Environment variables

Only in ClickHouse

  • Column-oriented Storage
  • Real-time Analytics
  • SQL Support
  • Linear Scalability
  • Data Compression
  • Vectorized Query Execution
  • Approximate Calculations
  • Kafka

Both cover

  • S3
  • Web support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Lambda (AWS Serverless)

  • Event-driven functions without managing serversnot ClickHouse
  • API backends behind API Gatewaynot ClickHouse
  • Processing S3, DynamoDB, SQS and Kinesis eventsnot ClickHouse
  • Scheduled jobs without a always-on instancenot ClickHouse
  • Edge compute through Lambda@Edgenot ClickHouse

ClickHouse

  • Business intelligencenot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
  • Data warehousingnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
  • Real-time analyticsnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
  • Reportingnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)
  • Machine learningnot Lambda (AWS Serverless)

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Lambda (AWS Serverless)

  • Billed on two axes at once, $0.20 per million requests plus $0.0000166667 per GB-second of duration, so memory settings change the bill as much as traffic does
  • Provisioned concurrency, used to avoid cold starts, is charged separately at $0.0000041667 per GB-second whether or not the function runs
  • Ephemeral storage beyond the included 512 MB is metered
  • Lambda@Edge costs $0.60 per million requests, three times the standard request rate
  • VPC use and cross-region data transfer carry EC2 charges on top

ClickHouse

  • Limited multi-row atomic transactions and expensive UPDATE/DELETE operations unsuitable for transactional systems
  • Requires upfront schema design discipline with MergeTree engine choices and sort/partition keys
  • Experimental vector search support, not production-ready for vector operations
  • Different query syntax from standard SQL requiring migration planning
  • Limited JOIN capabilities compared to traditional relational databases
  • Migration complexity with 2-4 weeks estimated for data type mapping and query translation

Pricing, plan by plan

Lambda (AWS Serverless)

Free
  • Free TierFree
    • 1M free requests/month
    • 400,000 GB-seconds/month
    • Always free

ClickHouse

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the ClickHouse review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Lambda (AWS Serverless) if

  • You need function-as-a-service.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want event-driven execution.
Lambda (AWS Serverless) review

Choose ClickHouse if

  • You need column-oriented storage.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows (via Docker).
  • You also want real-time analytics.
ClickHouse review

Questions people ask

Is Lambda (AWS Serverless) or ClickHouse better?
Neither clearly leads. Lambda (AWS Serverless) starts at Free and ClickHouse at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Lambda (AWS Serverless) or ClickHouse?
Lambda (AWS Serverless) starts at Free and ClickHouse at Free.
Does Lambda (AWS Serverless) or ClickHouse run on more platforms?
Lambda (AWS Serverless) runs on Web, Api. ClickHouse runs on Linux, macOS, Windows (via Docker).
Can I use Lambda (AWS Serverless) for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Lambda (AWS Serverless) best used for?
Lambda (AWS Serverless) is most often used for event-driven functions without managing servers, api backends behind api gateway, processing s3, dynamodb, sqs and kinesis events, scheduled jobs without a always-on instance. Of those, event-driven functions without managing servers and api backends behind api gateway are not what ClickHouse is typically brought in for.
What can Lambda (AWS Serverless) do that ClickHouse cannot?
Lambda (AWS Serverless) covers Function-as-a-Service, Event-driven execution, Auto-scaling, Pay-per-use. ClickHouse covers Column-oriented Storage, Real-time Analytics, SQL Support, Linear Scalability. Both handle S3, Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

ClickHouse: What is ClickHouse best used for?

ClickHouse is optimized for analytical workloads on large datasets. It excels at fast aggregations and queries, being 10-100x faster than PostgreSQL on large aggregations.

Source
ClickHouse: Does ClickHouse support transactions?

ClickHouse has limited transaction support and expensive UPDATE/DELETE operations. It is not suitable for transactional workloads requiring strict ACID guarantees.

Source
ClickHouse: How does ClickHouse compare to PostgreSQL?

ClickHouse is 10-100x faster for analytics but PostgreSQL is better for transactional workloads. Many teams use both: PostgreSQL for writes via MaterializedPostgreSQL replication to ClickHouse for analytics.

Source
ShareXLinkedInRedditWhatsAppEmail

Related pages

More on Lambda (AWS Serverless)

More on ClickHouse

Keep looking

Other head to heads